


Pressure Test

by timeforsomethrillingheroics



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: M/M, set in s2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-22
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:34:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27662771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timeforsomethrillingheroics/pseuds/timeforsomethrillingheroics
Summary: Every time Tyler looks at Jeremy, he thinks, ‘I have no idea what Vicki saw in that guy.'
Relationships: Jeremy Gilbert/Tyler Lockwood
Kudos: 33





	Pressure Test

**Author's Note:**

> Watching TVD for the first time, and I'm in deep lads. This is set in season two, because that's as far as I've gotten. Pretty sure canon is about to blow up my rare pair ship, but here we are.

Every time Tyler looks at Jeremy, he thinks, ‘I have no idea what Vicki saw in that guy.’ 

He keeps thinking that until one day when he’s offering a Dimebag as another weird olive branch, Jeremy looks up. His eyes are shaded by his stupid floppy hair, and he gives Tyler a rueful smile. He doesn’t take what Tylers offers, but his smile transforms his face into something Tyler doesn't quite recognize. And Tyler thinks, grudgingly, ‘Alright Vicki, I get it.’

\- - - 

They have a routine. It’s almost a dance. Tyler’s a dick. Or Jeremy’s a dick. Or maybe Jeremy’s justifiably angry, and Tyler can’t tell the difference. Either way, Tyler eventually feels a little bad about being a dick and offers Jeremy a drink, or a smoke, or asks him where to score pills. Familiar ground. And Jeremy turns him down. He’s not sure why, outside of the obvious, because it’s not like Jeremy ever turned down drugs when Vicki was around. And then they’re back to where they started. Sometimes Tyler throws the first punch. Sometimes Jeremy. Most of the time, Tyler can’t even figure out why they’re mad. But somehow they’re in the dirt, and Tylers bleeding, or Jeremy’s bleeding, or they’re both bleeding, and maybe it’s not the healthiest, but man does it feel nice to get to punch someone who’s willing to punch back.

The real problem, Tyler thinks as he fingers a split lip, is he can’t tell who the wronged party is. Did Jeremy sleep with his girl, or did he sleep with Jeremy’s? Or maybe that’s not the real problem. Maybe the real problem is the real wronged party, Vicki, isn’t here to beat the shit out of him, so he has to settle for sloppy seconds.

Except then the dance shifts. And it leaves Tyler feeling distinctly left-footed. Because now Jeremy’s being nice to him. Jeremy’s the one offering an olive branch. Tyler, of course, rips it up and stomps on it. Because as has already been established by pretty much everyone that has met him, Tyler is a dick.

He can see it while it’s happening. It’s like his own reality show of personal failings. ‘Tyler being a dick, in live time’ - but he can’t stop. A gift from his father, just for him.

So no, he doesn’t accept the smile. Or the hand. Or the words. He does what he usually does and can’t figure out why Jeremy still manages to look surprised every time he’s turned down.

\- - - 

At his father's funeral, Tyler can’t figure out why Jeremy is still trying to be nice to him. He has the perfect opportunity to kick Tyler while he’s down, and instead, Jeremy’s hovering awkwardly by the door like he’s trying to bond over their dead dads or something equally fucked up. Tyler knows he doesn’t deserve it; he knows he’s an asshole even when he’s actively trying not to be. And he’s been more of an asshole to Jeremy than most. But things are still awkward with Matt, his dad's dead, and his surfer uncle is back in town telling Tyler how he looked when he was twelve, so offering Jeremy a drink so that he’ll stick around and maybe make today less miserable isn’t the weirdest thing that’s happened this month. 

It is weird when Jeremy accepts, though.

When his uncle comes into the room a few minutes later, before they can even start working on a buzz, Tyler can’t tell if he’s relieved or disappointed.

\- - - 

After the funeral, Tyler figures he’ll start being a jerk again and things will go back to normal. Normal isn’t great, but at least it's familiar. But Jeremy keeps being nice to him. He’s an asshole, and instead of rising to the bait, Jeremy looks at him with that weird half-smile, like he knows exactly what he’s going through, and well, maybe he does. And maybe Jeremy's still trying to bond over the whole dead dads thing, but he already told Jeremy his dad was a dick, so maybe this is just who Jeremy is when you aren’t a piece of shit to the girl he’s in love with.

Tyler doesn’t like thinking about that too long. He is already at emotional capacity for guilt.

\- - - 

The next time Tyler sees Jeremy, Tyler’s at the grill, fucking with his phone so he has something to do, but mostly he’s watching Jeremy, trying to figure out if this is a day Jeremy is going to try and be nice or not. He overhears Aimee, the pretty brown-haired girl he's just texted tell her friend Sarah that Jeremy’s damaged goods, and he has to chuckle a little because if Jeremy's damaged goods, then he must be an active land mine, but Aimee still said she was interested in getting drunk at his house tonight.

He’s surprised at himself when he invites Jeremy along, but maybe he shouldn’t be. He’s always been unpredictable when it comes to Elena’s little brother, and he's feeling generous. Or maybe lonely. Or maybe both. And he knows it’s not like Jeremy has anything better to do.

The next thing Tyler knows he’s watching Jeremy flirt with Sarah in his dining room, and he doesn’t even know why other than Jeremy is just so **bad** at it. It's all slow smiles and surprised laughs, but Sarah's eating it up.

Later, when he’s pouring Aimee a drink, she says “I think Sarah’s got a thing for Jeremy” and something small and ugly curls up in his belly and sits there. 

“Well good for Sarah,” he replies in a clipped voice, handing Aimee her drink with a practiced smile.

Later, he convinces Jeremy to show the girls his sketchbook, half hoping for a laugh before remembering, ‘Oh, this is something he’s good at.’ Then he's flipping through the pages and all the drawings are werewolf pictures. And his hands are shaking, but that’s nothing he isn’t used to. 

Jeremy’s asks him if he still draws and Tyler's reply is noncommittal because he’s not that guy. He’s a Triple-A athlete, not someone that doodles in class. Things are fucked and his uncle has an agenda that doesn’t include Tyler, but there's still a social order to his world. And people like him don’t admit to caring about something like drawing. So Tyler's friendly and self-deprecating, right up until he’s sure they’re alone and then he has Jeremys throat in one hand and there’s blood rushing in his ears because he’s asking a question he already knows the answer to but maybe it’s just one of those things you have to ask anyway. He can feel Jeremy’s pulse under his clenched fingers and when Jeremy says he knows about werewolves, suddenly Tyler's not angry anymore.

And maybe it speaks to how regularly they’ve punched each other over the last year, but it feels normal when Jeremy doesn’t get mad after he lets go. Maybe that’s what their relationship is. The expectation of violence, and those weird moments in between. Maybe it’s anticipated, and he’s the weird one for overthinking it.

Even if it’s normal, it doesn’t mean it's right, and Tyler still thinks maybe Jeremy should be madder for the whole grabbing him by the throat thing but mostly Tyler’s too busy spilling his guts to someone he would have gladly smashed into the dirt just a couple months ago to let that get to him. 

It should be weird, talking to Jeremy, but mostly it’s relieving to be telling someone about what's been happening. Anyone. And he should be embarrassed, admitting his uncle is a werewolf (because he sounds crazy) who doesn’t give a shit (because he sounds desperate), but it’s not like he gives cares about Jeremy opinion so it works out fine.

Except then the girls, who he’s mostly forgotten about, burst into the room and Aimee says “Oh sorry… where you two having a moment?” and the half-joking implication in her voice makes his back stiffen and his teeth clench. When Sarah snatches the moonstone out of Jeremy’s hand a moment later he wishes he was surprised, but that just seems to be the way the evening is going.

As he chases Sarah up the stairs he says, “You’re lucky you're cute when you're drunk,” but what he really means is, 'you’re lucky you're a girl and I’m not ripping you a new one for being this sloppy and grabbing shit that doesn’t belong to you.' And then a moment later they’re on the middle landing scrabbling for the stone and she’s falling and this is it, his lifes over, and the look he exchanges with Jeremy says confirms it. 

But then Sarah laughs, lets out her breath, and says “fooled you,” and he can’t talk because there’s this awful split second where he’s disappointed (because now it's back to waiting for him to blow his life up again, instead of the awful satisfaction of knowing he's already done the worst thing he can do), so it’s a good thing Jeremy is covering for him.

Then it’s just him and Jeremy in the room (Sarah and Aimee have fucked off to find more alcohol), and all he can do is breathe, but somehow Jeremy knows what to do anyway. 

Jeremy looks up at Tyler for a while in silence, and then climbs the stairs with slow even steps, and slouches down next to him on the landing. They sit together awkwardly for a moment, Tyler's legs still scrunched under him from where he sagged to the floor, Jeremy more relaxed with his back pressed against the rail of the stairs. Tyler can feel Jeremy look at him, even though he doesn’t turn his head to confirm the gaze. 

Jeremy says “So that sucked,” into the silence and Tyler lets out a surprised laugh, quick and bitter. After another moment of silence Jeremy knocks his shoulder into Tyler’s, firm enough to feel it, but not firm enough to sting, and gets up, offering Tyler his hand. Tyler looks at it for a moment and then grimaces, pushing himself up from the floor with his palms. 

Jeremy smiles ruefully, like he didn’t expect anything else, and says “I’ll make sure they don’t grab any more shit on the way out.”

Tyler thinks he should say something like ‘thanks’ but instead he glares. Jeremy puts up his hands in the universal gesture of supplication and says “Hey man. Tonight could have been worse.” 

Tyler gives a jerky nod, and watches as Jeremy corrals both women towards the door, saying something about calling a cab.

Watching Jeremy quietly shut the door is the first time Tyler has felt grateful to anyone besides his mom or Matt since he was old enough to join the football team. 

It’s not a particularly pleasant feeling.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and critiques are always appreciated! I don't have a beta, so please feel free to point out any mistakes you notice! Not sure if I'll be continuing this fic or not. After I've watched past 2x5 maybe I'll turn this into something with multiple chapters if there is interest!


End file.
